If you have been running a small business that employs less than 50 people, or a business with a reasonably low turnover and the company or turnover is suddenly starting to grow, you will have to pay attention to your Employment Equity. According to the Employment Equity Act, all employers who employ 50 or more employees or have less than 50 employees but have an annual turnover higher than the relevant sector threshold, are required by law to submit an annual Employment Equity Report. Since Employment Equity Act was introduced, it has become necessary for the government to check on the progress of the EE (Employment Equity) plans set within these companies, and this report is one of the tools used to do so.

Often, small- to medium-sized enterprises do not have the internal expertise or dedicated HR personnel to deal with employment equity issues, and this is why many business owners or managers tend to outsource it to professional consultants. The laws and processes governing employment equity services can be very complicated, and it usually requires a highly informed specialist to ensure that the EE plan and EE reports are realistic, correct and legally compliant.

There are at least four benefits associated with outsourcing your employment equity services:

1. Access to subject matter experts: Employment equity services are complicated and involve legal processes and documentation. Leaving this in the hands of someone who is not well informed on the crucial issues can be a disaster. EE professionals know everything about the EE laws and requirements, and will help to ensure that your plans are actionable and that the correct laws are applied.

2. Legal compliance: If your EE reports and plans are not done strictly according to legislation, you could incur major penalties. This could cause a major financial setback for any company, especially for small- to medium-sized enterprises. Outsourcing to professional employment equity services will ensure that all legal requirements are followed and that your company is legally compliant when it comes to EE.

3. More time to focus on other business issues: If you don’t have to worry about the administration and legalities of EE, you can focus your time and energies on other aspects of the business to make it more productive and to generate more income.

4. Objective services: Because professional Employment Equity consultants are not connected to your business they are completely objective when it comes to your business. This provides them with a better overall vision of what needs to be done and how it is to be achieved in order to keep you legally compliant.

If you are not sure about your EE status and would like some more information about professional employment equity services, please give our friendly team at CHA Group a call and we will remove all the stress from your EE compliance!